Hi everyone! 

My name is Jane (she/her/hers), and I am a fourth-year English major with a minor in Professional Writing. I’m not really “from” anywhere; I was born in Oklahoma, moved to 8 different states in 11 years, attended elementary school through high school in suburban Kansas, then moved to Honolulu, Hawai’i with my family, who still live there. I moved to California solo in 2021 to attend community college, and was admitted to UCLA in Fall 2023. I love to read fiction and write poetry and short stories. My best day would be tanning at the beach with an acai bowl after a long run down the Strand in Manhattan Beach. I love thrifting, surfing, watching movies (I update my Letterboxd religiously), and spending time with my friends. I am a raging extrovert, and one of my favorite things in life is to meet new people and have new experiences. Attending UCLA has definitely cultivated a “college experience” in which I have been able to explore all of these passions in sunny southern California. I joined the sorority Alpha Delta Pi, the executive board of UCLA Surf Club, REACH Social Media Club, and became a feature writer for the online magazine HerCampus. I have worked for ASUCLA, I currently work as a Front Desk Assistant for the Department of Classics and Art History, and am starting my second year as a New Student Advisor for UCLA Orientation sessions over the summer. 

While I feel all of this has been defined by my UCLA experience, one of the most important aspects of my college experience I have yet to mention. I am also a transfer student, and I transferred from the wonderful community college, Santa Monica College. I originally applied to UCLA and UC Berkeley in 2022 (after my first year in community college), but I was rejected from both. As a writer, I appreciate constructive criticism, but as a perfectionist, I was used to being good at things immediately. The overwhelming passion I had for learning and building community, which had flooded me in high school, had slipped through my grasp in my first year of college. During my years in Kansas, I had dreamed of California as a haven filled with palm trees, seventy degrees, no bad days, and most importantly, no problems. My dad had gotten a full-ride volleyball scholarship to UCLA in 1985, and my childhood had been filled with stories of perfect west coast life. I had idealized college as a space where my problems of the past would disappear, and in that, I hadn’t focused on being present with myself and my surroundings, and on the hard work it took to transfer to a top university such as UCLA. The following year, I let the rejection motivate me, not deter me: I became more involved in my community college instead of moping around my apartment. I began tutoring for English, and joined clubs on campus that I had never heard of before. In my pursuit of UCLA, I discovered another community that I didn’t appreciate enough previously. In Spring 2023, I was accepted into UCLA, UC Berkeley, UCSD, UC Irvine, UCSB, and UC Davis. Although I came from a family of Bruins, I made the decision to attend UCLA on my own. My community college experience had become essential to who I was, and I wanted to be celebrated as a transfer student instead of facing unnecessary stigma. 

On Bruin Day for transfer students, I felt surrounded by celebration. It was different from how community college was thought of in high school; I was in a sea of people who had been in my exact situation, and current UCLA students who had transferred before me. A campus tour I went on was given by a transfer student, who reassured me I was where I was meant to be. Even though it was a speech, I felt touched by how personally she took to make sure each prospective student felt we belonged. I found clubs, resources, and events that were dedicated just to transfer students. The student workers at the Transfer Student Center greeted me like they were genuinely happy to see me, even though we had just met five minutes before, all because we were a part of the same community. Once I began my first quarter at UCLA, I didn’t face any judgment for coming from community college from any other students, transfer or traditional. Although I had idealized UCLA for my entire life, it became special to me through my own experiences, no longer solely from stories passed down to me. I formed my own memories; late nights waiting in line for Bittie Bitez donut truck, sunrises over Royce Hall, days filled with sunshine on walks to Westwood. Afternoons in Powell or YRL, accompanied with nothing but the sound of rapid typing and faint music coming from various headphones. I spent so many afternoons laughing with my friends on Janss, surrounded by my students in a sea of always-vibrant green grass, that my first year was almost over before I knew it. 

Because I only have two years at UCLA as a transfer student, I knew I wanted to spread this feeling of community to prospective students, like the transfer student mentors I had known in my first steps in my journey to UCLA. In the summer of 2024, after over a hundred hours of training, I became a New Student Advisor for New Student & Transition Programs, advising over 10,000 students in UCLA’s summer Orientation sessions. I had the opportunity to pass on advice and guidance to transfer and first-year students alike, and watch my impact make a difference in real-time. Part of what makes the Bruin community so special to me is how we truly exemplify community in passing along guidance, respect, encouragement, and friendship. If you are feeling lost, at UCLA, there is always a path or resource waiting to help you, and I am honored to be able to guide new students through this experience for the second summer in a row. 

As I am halfway through my last quarter at UCLA, I can confidently say that choosing this university was the best decision I have ever made. I have not only found a university, but a home of Bruins that will follow me throughout my lifetime. UCLA gave me not only the education I had dreamed about in high school, but also the second chance and push for personal growth I needed after facing rejection. Every club I joined, every friend I made, every quiet study moment and spontaneous adventure reminded me that I belonged here; not because of the stories I heard, but because of who I chose to become once I arrived. What makes UCLA so special to me isn’t just the palm trees, the prestige, or the beautiful campus. It’s the community. The way Bruins lift each other up, celebrate each other’s wins, and guide one another through the messy, amazing chaos of college life. I am proud to be part of a legacy that values not just excellence, but compassion and connection. When I think of UCLA, I think of every small, golden moment that made these two years unforgettable. I wouldn’t trade that for anything.